Can States Protect Us When the EPA Won’t?

Morath Weighs in on Monsanto v. Durnell

Do states have the right to insist on environmental protections for their citizens, even when federal agencies have refused to do so? That’s the question at the heart of 𝘔𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘷. 𝘋𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘭𝘭, which the Supreme Court is expected to answer in the coming weeks. In a recent article for The Conversation, Sabin Center Board Member and Wake Law Professor Sarah Morath weighed in on the dynamics of this case, which specifically addresses the implications of the EPA’s failure to require cancer risk warnings on pesticides. According to Morath, the Supreme Court’s decision will impact tens of thousands of pending “failure to warn” cases arising out of the alleged harms from glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup weed killer.

Read on for the implications of this case, which go far beyond weedkiller to the fundamental rights of states to protect their citizens.